If you've been enjoying MieliePeeps for a while, you'll know that Thursday
is the day that we see our crafters. Today Ntsapokazi (left) arrived at Mielie
with her head shaven. She's the third Mielie Peep to do so recently - first it
was Zanele and then it was Ntombi's (pictured, right) turn. I salute you girls
- you have MUCH more guts than I do!
Noseko arrived back safely from a funeral in the Ciskei. As is tradition at
this time of the year, she brought us an Eastern Cape pineaple, which is a
completely different animal than the small queen pineapples we get locally.
The Queens are very tasty, but if you want to make pineapple juice, there is
nothing better than the Eastern Cape variety. Enkosi kakhulu, Noseko!
Mzo and I went to source mielie strips today and got really lucky - we found
fantastic colours, soon to be turned into Mielie bags, and then we found a
takeaway that makes fabulous Fish buns. Oh, joy!
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Remember the wave carpet first mentioned here? Well it's finished and it's
beautiful, don't you think?
Mielie had been quite quiet recently, so everyone wanted to do the carpet.
Sheila decided to draw lots, and Manyawuza's name was drawn.
Pictured above are Manyawuza and Sheila, who recently went to Norway
together, compliments of Springbok, one of Mielie's outlets in Oslo.
Finally I would like to say hi to all Elizabeths out there, especially my sister,
Liza, who lives in Taiwan. Did you know that your name has consistently been
one of the most popular girl's names for the past 200 years? That's something
to feel special about!
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I popped in to meet with Margie and Hayley of Africa Nova today. Oh my,
Margie has created an exquisite shop! I think a visit to Africa Nova on
its own is enough reason to cross the globe to visit Cape Town.
I would also like to acknowledge Margie and her husband Nick for encouraging
me when Mielie was still in its baby shoes. If there are any designers/product
developers out there who would like to hear my two cents' worth, here it is:
A shop owner who really understands her customer-base and has taken the
trouble to understand your product is worth listening to.
There were no Mielie bags to be seen in the shop, but watch this space!
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This branch of flowers goes to the person who just took a peep at our blog and
tipped the counter over to 1000! The flowers are actually little brooches,
made by Nomalungisa, or Lungi, as she's known round here. Lungi has a great
flair for colour and texture. She's also always laughing. Come rain or shine,
she'll probably come to work wearing her jeans and her black leather jacket.
Keep it up, Lungi, we love having you in our team!
Speaking of flowers, be inspired by these featured on a recent blog entry
from Tiny Happy. Click here for more. Eish!
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... or are these pictures taken by Kathleen during our outing to Khayelitsha
really beautiful?
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Marina and I were very privileged to spend this week in the company of
Kathleen Holland, a marketing strategist from Canada who helped us to
develop a road map to grow our little Mielie business, into a healthy
Mielie field that feeds many people.
I learnt so much, I wouldn't know where to start to tell you. I'm really
fired up to start executing our plan - heck, I can't wait for Monday!
We took Kathleen to meet some of our weavers in Khayelitsha this morning.
As always, it was wonderful to see all the Miepie peeps in their homes.
They had all received their new orders yesterday, so everyone was busy
sketching their designs up on the hessians.
So, what does the photo of a Shelley bag have to do with all of this, you
may well ask? Nothing, actually. It's just that - aarg - my camera's battery
was flat when we were in Khayelitsha, so I thought I'd give you this pic
instead. I love its subtle shades - for those who speak Mielie colour, I'd
say that the colourway is Lagoon meets a hint Army, don't you think? I also
love way it matches my wrist gloves, knitted by Astrid.
So sincere gratitude to the following people:
- Kathleen for sharing her time and the benefit of all her experience with us
- Zoe and Craft Network for making it possible
- Deon for holding things together on the home front.
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On a Thursday, our weavers arrive at Mielie carrying their week's work
on their heads. I've heard that it can be really bad for your neck and
spine, but it still makes a pretty good party trick!
Thursdays are always very social and noisy, with old friends catching
up and new friendships made. My Xhosa is still in its baby shoes, so
usually I have to ask someone to translate. The most popular topics of
conversation? Food and men!
And then it's time to clean up,
load up and head home.
Thank you for your beautiful work and see you next week, manenikazi!
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Show:
On Monday we sent these curtains off the Heritage Hotel, who commissioned
them for one of the hotel rooms.
The flowers and butterflies were hand-felted and -stitched onto sheer 100%
linen – very expensive material compared to the cheap reclaimed materials
I am used to working with! I was really nervous to measure, cut and sew it.
We positioned a little wool fleece "cushion" behind each flower to make it
look a bit plumper. I'm really pleased with how it came out, and, even better,
my client, Vicky, is also happy with the result.
Tell:
Remember my blog entry last Thursday when so many Mielie crafters arrived
wearing lilac and I told you about "the purple shall govern"? I found this
pic for you. (The book is about ways to protest injustice peacefully)
Ask:
I am spending this week in a workshop hammering out a marketing strategy.
It's been fascinating, it's been eye-opening... it's been and a lot of hard work.
I have a question for you that will help us immensely:
What is the one* word that leaps into your mind when you think of
Mielie's products?
* OK, I'm a Libra - I would never restrict you to one word only. If you
need 5 words, fine - just not 100 words, ok?
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Yesterday, I intercepted these beautiful clutch bags before they were packed.
It was a beautiful day with a bit more light than we've had in the past couple
of weeks, if a bit chilly. Perfect light for snapping bags at the Greenhouse,
the nursery at the Montebello Design Centre, where we are based.
If you are looking for some inspiration on the recycling front, look no further
than Ann P Smith's website. Oh my goodness, I'm in awe.
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Remember the wave bag I told you about here?
Well, sewn up it looks like this:
See what I mean about the pattern getting a bit lost? Oh well,
we'll just have to wait for the carpet version of this design.
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